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Bipartisan group predicts U.S. debt default as soon as summer, depending on tax receipts
By: Jennifer Shutt - February 22, 2023
WASHINGTON — A bipartisan think tank expects that the United States will default on its debt in the summer or early fall, if Congress doesn’t take action to address the debt limit before then. The timeline is similar to one the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office released last week, saying lawmakers have until sometime between July […]
U.S. likely to default on debt between July and September unless Congress acts, CBO says
By: Jennifer Shutt - February 16, 2023
WASHINGTON — Congress has until at least July to broker a bipartisan debt agreement if lawmakers want to avoid a first-ever default, according to the Congressional Budget Office. The nonpartisan scorekeeper, which typically details how much legislation would cost, released a report Wednesday saying that U.S. lawmakers and the Biden administration have until sometime between […]
Attorneys general from 23 GOP-led states back suit seeking to block abortion pill
By: Jennifer Shutt - February 13, 2023
WASHINGTON — Attorneys general representing nearly two dozen Republican states are backing a lawsuit that would remove the abortion pill from throughout the United States after more than two decades, eliminating the option even in states where abortion access remains legal. The state of Missouri filed its own brief in the case Friday while Mississippi […]
Who’s on the guest list for the State of the Union speech?
By: Jennifer Shutt and Ariana Figueroa - February 7, 2023
WASHINGTON — While members of Congress may not be able to speak during the State of the Union address, they often get their message across through the guests they bring. This year is no exception. Lawmakers through their invitees attempted to signal their approval or disapproval of President Joe Biden and the Democratic Party, or […]
U.S. House speaker calls for ‘responsible’ debt limit legislation, shares few details
By: Jennifer Shutt - February 7, 2023
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Monday said the greatest threat to the nation’s future is the rising national debt, though he gave few specifics for how he planned to lower deficit spending or avoid a first-ever default on the debt this year. The California Republican, in a 10-minute address from the U.S. […]
Of more than 7,500 threats against members of Congress in 2022, just 22 prosecuted
By: Jennifer Shutt - February 1, 2023
WASHINGTON — Members of Congress receive thousands of threats a year, though just a fraction of the people who call, mail or email will ever be prosecuted — a situation that’s of great concern to the police who guard members. Just 22 of the 7,501 threats lobbed at members during 2022 led to prosecution, the […]
National Dems give New Hampshire, Georgia more time to change 2024 primary dates
By: Jennifer Shutt - January 26, 2023
WASHINGTON — New Hampshire and Georgia will have a bit longer to implement key changes to when and how they hold Democratic presidential primaries, under an extension a Democratic National Committee panel approved Wednesday. Election officials will have until June 3 to move New Hampshire’s 2024 Democratic presidential primary to Feb. 13 and Georgia’s to […]
Federal judge could decide as soon as February to yank abortion pill nationwide
By: Jennifer Shutt - January 23, 2023
WASHINGTON — A Texas judge could decide as soon as next month whether to force the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to pull its two-decade-old approval of the abortion pill, which accounts for more than half of pregnancy terminations in the United States. A nationwide injunction in the case, as requested by anti-abortion groups, would […]
U.S. hits debt limit and Treasury Department begins ‘extraordinary measures’
By: Jennifer Shutt - January 20, 2023
WASHINGTON — The nation reached its debt limit Thursday, beginning the uncertain process known as extraordinary measures, in which the U.S. Treasury Department uses accounting maneuvers to avoid defaulting on the debt. The often-used practice is intended to give the Republican House, Democratic Senate and Biden administration time to negotiate a bipartisan agreement to raise […]
White House defends delay in revealing classified documents at Biden private office, home
By: Jennifer Shutt - January 17, 2023
WASHINGTON — The White House on Tuesday defended sitting on information about Obama administration classified documents found at President Joe Biden’s private residence and a think tank, saying officials are attempting to balance working with the Justice Department and sharing information publicly. “We understand that there’s a tension between the need to be cooperative with […]
U.S. attorney general names special counsel for classified docs found in Biden’s garage
By: Jennifer Shutt and Jacob Fischler - January 12, 2023
WASHINGTON — The White House revealed Thursday morning that more classified documents from President Joe Biden’s time as vice president were discovered outside of secure government facilities, this time in the garage at his Wilmington, Delaware home. The files have since been turned over to the U.S. Justice Department, which opened a special counsel investigation […]
U.S. House Republicans push through two anti-abortion measures in first work week
By: Jennifer Shutt - January 11, 2023
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House on Wednesday approved its first measures under a new Republican majority, eliciting strong support from GOP members and opposition from Democrats, who rejected the legislation as misleading and incomplete. Republicans, who secured a four-seat majority during the November midterm elections, said the bill setting medical standards on a national level […]